Chapter 229

Half a month later.

A dharma ship streaked across the heavens.

The vessel was lavishly decorated, radiating multicolored light and carrying a faint fragrance of cosmetics and perfume. It was clearly a pleasure barge belonging to female cultivators.

Standing upon the deck, a woman dressed in revealing robes gazed toward the direction of the Eastern Waters Bai Family, her face filled with melancholy.

“White Bone Dao...”

This woman was none other than Yin Ping'er.

After so many years, her cultivation had reached the mid-stage of Dao Foundation. She had been transferred back to the main Blissful Union Sect and originally possessed promising prospects.

Unfortunately, the Hidden-Treasury Domain had gone mad and launched an all-out war against the Blissful Union Sect. Every Dao Foundation disciple had become little more than expendable material.

She had failed to compete against a senior sister within the sect and had ultimately been assigned to this external reinforcement mission. She had no choice but to come.

“The ones attacking the Eastern Waters Bai Family are the monks of the White Bone Dao.”

Yin Ping'er gritted her teeth as she pondered how to preserve her life.

“If we're talking about the White Bone Dao, I once had a bit of friendship with both Qingjing and Miaofeng... Sigh. Unfortunately, both of them are dead. Instead, Fang Shui, the one who once held a grudge against me, now struts about in glory. They call him the 'Vajra Strength Duzi' now. He's already qualified to speak with Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters as an equal.”

The moment she thought of Fang Shui, her expression grew even more complicated.

Back then, her sister's death had been suspiciously connected to that man. To deal with him, she had spent considerable effort recruiting Miaofeng Bright Son and Qingjing Wisdom Consort, paying no small price.

Yet later, Fang Shui had been converted by the White Bone Dharma King. He had become astonishingly formidable, to the point where even Miaofeng was no match for him.

“Qingjing and Miaofeng were useless too. They spent their entire lives serving their Guru, yet couldn't even win the struggle for favor against later arrivals.”

“They didn't even survive long enough to reach this era, dying while still being Bright One. If they had lasted until now, they would at least be two Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters. Maybe I could've relied on those connections to save my life.”

As she thought this, her gaze drifted toward a graceful figure nearby.

It belonged to one of the sect's newly advanced Purple Mansion cultivators, known as Spiritual Master Hong Yao.

This time she had been dispatched to support the Eastern Waters Bai Family. Clearly, she too was not particularly favored within the sect.

The fierce wind howled.

Yin Ping'er suddenly sensed something wrong.

At some unknown point, a layer of haze had spread across the heavens. The world grew dim and gloomy.

The sound of flapping wings echoed through the void, as though countless birds had been startled into flight.

“What Spiritual Master has come to trouble this little sister?”

Spiritual Master Hong Yao activated her divine ability and rose into the air.

The moment she did, a White Bone Sarira came flying toward her.

The Sarira suddenly spun in place and transformed into a towering White Bone Divine Demon of Great Strength. A massive pale skeletal hand crashed downward.

“Enemy attack!”

The shrill cry of a woman instantly echoed throughout the flower ship.

Yin Ping'er hurriedly produced her ribbon-shaped Dao Foundation spiritual artifact. Having barely steadied her nerves and prepared for battle, she suddenly saw a Bronze Ancient Ge descend from the heavens like a pillar supporting the sky itself, smashing directly toward Spiritual Master Hong Yao.

Divine abilities surrounded Spiritual Master Hong Yao. Her figure flickered several times, moving as though chasing the sun and moon. Another yang-body emerged from her form, and the two figures fled in opposite directions.

It was the divine ability Earth-Skimming Movement!

“She... she escaped?”

Yin Ping'er's eyes widened.

The next moment, she dropped to her knees.

“This humble woman greets the White Bone Dharma King and the Vajra Strength Duzi! I am willing to submit and become a Wisdom Consort under the Guru.”

She had already recognized the ge-wielding cultivator.

It was Fang Shui, the very man she had once offended.

Her heart immediately filled with misery.

“Rise.”

Fang Qing spoke indifferently.

“The Eastern Waters Bai Family's Three Waters Four Convergences Array still requires Dao Foundation cultivators to fill its array nodes. You are to proceed there immediately. There must be no delay.”

“Yes!”

Yin Ping'er and the surrounding Dao Foundation cultivators rose to their feet.

Their expressions remained calm as they accepted Fang Qing's order to march toward certain death.

Fang Qing's gaze swept across them and briefly landed on Yin Ping'er.

Yet not the slightest ripple stirred within his heart.

This renowned courtesan, whose beauty had once been celebrated throughout Ancient Shu, ought to calmly accept her own death.

“The success of this ambush against the reinforcements was largely due to the assistance of the All Beings Without Form.”

Fang Qing turned toward Sangji, his expression respectful.

“The Great Dharma King oversees the entire battlefield and understands the situation completely. We merely contributed our modest efforts.”

Sangji pressed his palms together.

Most of the information regarding the Blissful Union Sect's reinforcement forces had somehow been leaked. Their troops had been intercepted and attacked across multiple locations.

The situation left Fang Qing increasingly suspicious that spies from the Hidden-Treasury Domain had infiltrated deep into the Blissful Union Sect.

“What a pity that Spiritual Master Hong Yao escaped.”

He sighed at the end.

“She is, after all, an early Purple Mansion cultivator.”

Sangji nodded.

“If the void were not locked down, defeating her alone would already be extraordinarily difficult.”

“Once enhanced by Earth-Skimming Movement, her movement techniques become even more mysterious after advancing to the divine ability level. If she truly wishes to flee, neither you nor I can stop her.”

“This matter is settled. We should return to the Eastern Waters Bai Family.”

At present, the Eastern Waters Bai Family remained sealed off by the two Dumu.

Although Spiritual Master Bai Mu was likewise in poor condition, if he truly chose to emerge and fight to the death, the entire battle could collapse at any moment.

Yet after thinking about it, Fang Qing knew very well that Spiritual Master Bai Mu would never do such a thing.

Not to mention their previous unspoken understanding, but for a mid-stage Purple Mansion cultivator to trade away two Dumu?

Even the Blissful Union Sect would never agree to such a losing deal, much less Spiritual Master Bai Mu, whose entire Purple Mansion clan depended upon him alone.

“Why do I get the feeling... that the Blissful Union Sect isn't particularly eager to rescue its subordinate Purple Mansion forces?”

While flying, Fang Qing voiced his doubts.

“That is only natural.”

Sangji appeared completely unsurprised.

“The Blissful Union Sect is, after all, a Golden Core sect. The only thing it truly values is its mountain gate. As for the various Purple Mansion forces under its command, they are merely crops growing in a field. Once the grain has matured, it is harvested.”

“There has never been a master willing to risk his own life for livestock he raises.”

Sangji saw the matter very clearly.

As for the damage this would do to the loyalty of their subordinates once word spread?

Would a Golden Core sect really care about something as laughable as people's hearts?

“In that case, we have a good chance of persuading Spiritual Master Bai Mu to surrender.”

A trace of delight rose in Fang Qing's heart.

If the Bai Family resisted to the bitter end and was exterminated, there was no guarantee how many divine ability scriptures and cultivation manuals would survive. It would be far better if they cooperated and handed everything over willingly.

'After all, they are a Purple Mansion clan of the [Ji Water] lineage.'

'There might even be a Purple Mansion spiritual object among their treasures.'

The thought alone made Fang Qing's heart stir with anticipation.

Eastern Waters Region.

A flower boat descended from the sky.

One female Dao Foundation cultivator after another flew out from it, led by none other than Yin Ping'er.

“Reinforcements from the upper sect!”

“The heavenly soldiers of the upper sect have arrived!”

Every member of the Bai Family who witnessed the scene from within the array became wildly excited.

Only Bai Mulin's expression turned increasingly strange.

“The Blissful Union reinforcements have already been condemned. We sinners can only atone through death by attacking the array!”

Yin Ping'er spoke as calmly as though she were commenting on the affairs of strangers.

Then her graceful figure twisted lightly as she rode a gauze-like Dao Foundation spiritual artifact straight into the Purple Mansion grand array.

The moment she entered, Bai Mulin's face changed dramatically.

“Why are you still standing around? Activate the array!”

He roared loudly.

The array shifted.

A torrent of water appeared and swept across Yin Ping'er.

In an instant, the Dao Foundation cultivator's flesh and blood vanished completely.

A vast surge of qi-blood and mana, far beyond that of a Qi Ingestion cultivator, spread through the array and caused its operation to stall slightly.

Then one Blissful Union Sect Dao Foundation cultivator after another threw themselves into the array and perished.

As the deaths continued, Bai Mulin's expression grew increasingly pale and hopeless.

'If the Blissful Union Sect truly intended to save us, how could their entire force be thrown away like this?'

'Could it be... that our Eastern Waters Bai Family is truly going to defect to the Hidden-Treasury Domain today?'

Just then, a voice sounded beside his ear.

“Mulin, come here...”

“Ancestor!”

At the mention of Spiritual Master Bai Mu, Bai Mulin finally felt some stability return to his heart as he hurried toward the Solitary Wood Grove.

“Hm?”

Seeing that most of the Bai Family's Purple Mansion grand array had already been destroyed while Spiritual Master Bai Mu still showed no intention of surrendering, Fang Qing could not help but feel surprised.

“Has Spiritual Master Bai Mu gone mad?”

“Or has the Blissful Union Sect offered him terms he simply cannot refuse?”

“Enough. The arrow has already been nocked. Our White Bone Dao must destroy this Purple Mansion array.”

At Sangji's command, the Moonlight White Dumu and Peacock Dumu once again manifested their Dharma Bodies.

A terrifying Great Strength White Bone Divine Demon rose up, towering even higher than the golden bodies themselves.

The three colossal figures surrounded the Purple Mansion array and launched relentless attacks.

Meanwhile, Fang Qing gripped his Bronze Ge.

The authority of Divine Might continuously gathered and poured into his body.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, the Bronze Ge descended like a heavenly pillar collapsing.

The strike seemed capable of shattering heaven and earth itself as its tip slammed into the Purple Mansion formation.

Ripple!

Waterlight spread through the void.

Countless ripples expanded outward like circles on a lake.

The ripples grew larger and larger until they finally reached their limit and burst apart.

Crash!

The radiance of countless strands of [Ji Water] dimmed.

The Purple Mansion grand array shattered with a thunderous roar, revealing the Bai Family ancestral grounds behind it.

“Even now, will this heretic still refuse to submit?”

Sangji unleashed a lion's roar. Had Spiritual Master Bai Mu surrendered before the array broke, he could still have retained considerable status.

After joining the Hidden-Treasury Domain, he might even have become a Dharma King and established his own lineage, much like Black Spring Temple. Though inferior to the Temple of the Origin of All Dharmas, such a position would still have been highly prestigious.

But now that the Purple Mansion array had fallen, he would likely be reduced to nothing more than a Duzi or a Dharma Protector.

Spiritual Master Bai Mu could not possibly misunderstand this.

Which meant he had already made his decision.

Or perhaps the Blissful Union Sect had offered him something impossible to reject.

“My fellow Daoists... please.”

Within the Solitary Wood Grove, Spiritual Master Bai Mu stood atop an enormous banyan tree.

His face appeared deathly pale, as though his vitality had suffered severe damage.

In his hand, he casually played with a strange circular ring.

The ring was only palm-sized, yet it radiated astonishing [Ji Water] brilliance.

It was unmistakably a Purple Mansion treasure.

'As expected... the Eastern Waters Bai Family possesses a hereditary Purple Mansion treasure!'

'But why does he look so terrible?'

'Did his Dao injuries worsen again?'

'When he left the array to battle us previously, had he already exhausted everything he had?'

'Or has some calculation gone terribly wrong?'

'Purple Mansion cultivators really do have miserable fates. Swallow the wrong spiritual flame or cultivate the wrong divine ability, and the consequences become disastrous.'

Even while silently mocking him, Fang Qing tightened his grip on the Bronze Ge.

Buzz!

Before the thought could fully finish, Spiritual Master Bai Mu suddenly tossed the ring into the air.

The Purple Mansion treasure was known as the Water-Parting Ring.

After being tempered by generations of Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters, it possessed extraordinary powers.

The moment it flew out, a curtain of fine rain descended from the heavens.

Boundless [Ji Water] radiance flooded the world.

This was one of the Water-Parting Ring's divine functions:

Water-Parting.

The rain curtain descended.

In that instant, Fang Qing discovered that he had been separated from everything around him.

The rain itself had isolated him from the battlefield.

He became a solitary traveler standing between heaven and earth, facing an endless torrential downpour.

“Ha!”

Without the slightest fear, Fang Qing unleashed the full power of Divine Might through the Bronze Ge and smashed it into the rain curtain.

Boom!

Above the heavens, the azure radiance of [Ji Water] collided violently with the dark-black power of [Nu Earth].

The endless rainfall suddenly froze in place.

At that moment, Fang Qing faintly heard something through the rain.

Broken fragments of chanting.

The distant roar of the Great Strength White Bone Divine Demon.

And then... everything became indistinct once more.